Vibrant Soundbridge® - now approved to treat
conductive and mixed hearing losses
Innsbruck, Austria, 26 September 2007

MED-EL Medical Electronics of Innsbruck, Austria, announced today that the indications for the middle ear implant Vibrant Soundbridge have been extended to include conductive and mixed hearing losses in Europe. This new approval means that the Vibrant Soundbridge may be offered as a treatment option not only to patients with mild to severe sensorineural hearing loss but also to persons who suffer from conductive and mixed hearing losses due to outer and middle ear problems. Over the past three years, leading surgical centers in Europe studied the Vibrant Soundbridge and proved its success and benefit to patients who had few, if any, alternatives for better hearing. New surgical techniques, called Vibroplasty, demonstrate that the unique design of the Vibrant Soundbridge, with its very small FMT, contributes to its success in treating complicated middle ear conditions. The Vibrant Soundbridge is a very reliable and flexible hearing system and has been implanted in thousands of patients in more than 20 countries worldwide over the past 11 years.